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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29535330">Finding Sanctuary</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/SecretlyATimelady/pseuds/SecretlyATimelady'>SecretlyATimelady</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Original Work</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Friendship, Gen, How do I tag?, I'm still proud of it, Post-Apocalyptic, Survival, Zombie Apocalypse, Zombies, not a clue., sounds cliche and probably is</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-02-18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-02-18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-15 18:35:59</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,616</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29535330</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/SecretlyATimelady/pseuds/SecretlyATimelady</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>With zombies around every corner, Scarlett Jacquin and Danielle Brown try to survive and find sanctuary in a ruined world.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Danny &amp; Luke, Scarlett &amp; Danny</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Finding Sanctuary</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The abandoned shack stood silently watching the old moor. It occasionally shuddered, aged limbs of rotten timber groaning as the cruel winter wind howled though the gaping window frames. Their glass had been lost long ago, perhaps to playing children, perhaps simply to age, but it most likely fell to zombies.</p><p>They appeared 4 years ago – although one would think it had been longer. The human race was all but annihilated, and devastatingly little of the old world remained.<br/>
Some of the few scattered survivors had formed various Sanctuaries, and now most humans were either dead, residing in a Sanctuary, or trying to find one.</p><p>Scarlett Jacquin and Danielle Brown belonged to the latter category, and were trekking through the wastelands of the old cities. The two women were trying to find a Sanctuary, for their old one had been overrun by zombies a few weeks ago. Almost everyone had been killed or infected – a bite or even a mere scratch from a zombie carried the parasite that caused the transformations.</p><p>The two stumbled upon the old shack and decided to rest there for the night. It was bitterly cold in the moors and, to make matters worse, it had been raining relentlessly for the best part of three hours and the downpour showed no sign of abating any time soon.</p><p>“No use being so exhausted we can barely stand.” Scarlett pushed her mass of dripping hair out of her face as she carefully opened the door to the dilapidated building on the moor, “We should rest here for the night.”</p><p>“We don’t want to be making a zombie’s life any easier now do we?” joked Danielle, trying to lighten the mood. Her ash-blonde pixie cut was plastered to her forehead and rain ran down her face in rivulets.<br/>
Scarlett snorted lightly before creeping carefully through to what looked like the sitting room and placing her backpack down on the dusty floor.</p><p>“Danny?”</p><p>“Yeah?” She looked over from where she had been examining the door for a possible locking mechanism – anything that could aid in keeping zombies out. The two had heard many a story of people who forgot to secure their lodgings for the night only to be rudely awoken by zombies.</p><p>“I’m going to search the kitchen for any food. Can you try to secure the doors and windows?”</p><p>“Sure thing, Red.” Scarlett rolled her eyes fondly at the nickname. They had been talking late one night, and Danny had commented on how her name matched her long flame-red hair, and thus the nickname ‘Red’ was born.</p><p>Scarlett wandered in search of a kitchen until she found a door that lead into it. The room was old fashioned, with a gas cooker and chipped slate counter tops. The fridge was rusted and in the eerie silence Scarlett couldn’t hear it humming so she assumed it wasn’t working – not that she was surprised. There had clearly been something perishable in it, as she could smell the sour stench of food four years out of date. She found a cupboard with some tins of what looked assorted curries and pasta sauces. Even two containing spaghetti bolognaise complete with noodles.</p><p><br/>
<em>Perfect!</em>
</p><p><br/>
Next, she walked over to the gas stove and attempted to light it. It didn’t work, but she figured it was worth a shot.</p><p>When Scarlett came back to the main room toting multiple cans of food, she found Danielle had already barricaded the windows and was busy filling the old-fashioned wood-burner with logs from the crate next to it.</p><p>“Oh, hey! You’re back! These people actually had a wood-burner!” That was great, because anything electricity based no longer worked seeing as there was nowhere generating it anymore. “There’s definitely enough wood to get us through the night and- wait! Is that spaghetti?”</p><p>“Sure is!” Scarlett resisted the urge to laugh at Danny’s delighted expression. She understood her joy, though. They hadn’t had the luxury of anything like this for a long time. Danielle struck a match and tossed it into the wood-burner, watching as it caught fire; she then gestured for Scarlett to pass her the two tins and pulled off their lids, setting them in front of the fire to warm.</p><p>The next morning, they rose from their sleeping bags early, unwilling to waste even a second of the precious daylight. The two of them ate a breakfast of crackers and tinned peaches that they had been lucky enough to find lurking at the back of a cupboard. They left the house just as the sun fully rose and carried on their journey towards the city and the Sanctuary within.</p><p>As the women approached the city, they became aware of an issue with their plan: The city was absolutely crawling with zombies.</p><p>“And how exactly are we meant to get past these things?” hissed Danielle, irritably brushing her fringe out of her eyes as she knelt in the grass, trying to get a good look at the city without being spotted.</p><p>Scarlett scanned the city, her hazel eyes taking in the different potential routes.</p><p>“I think…” she began, “if we go to the left a little-“ she pointed to an area with marginally fewer zombies “-we can probably make it to the Sanctuary unseen. In fact-!” she cut herself off excitedly, “I think I can see it from here!” She grinned at the other woman, “God, Danny! I think we’ve almost made it!”</p><p>They entered the city cautiously, hoping to avoid unnecessary zombie encounters. At one point, Danny had to yank Red behind a building by the straps of her bag to avoid a zombie lumbering down the street.</p><p>“It should be right ahead,” murmured Scarlett, squinting at a crudely drawn map.</p><p>“Yeah. Right past that horde of bloodthirsty monsters, you mean.”</p><p>“Way to be a downer, Danny. But yeah,” Groused Scarlett.</p><p><br/>
Danny sighed in resignation. She knew that the scent of that many humans in one place was bound to attract them, the same had happened at their last Sanctuary: Their defences had been overwhelmed by the sheer number of zombies attracted to the scent of the humans.</p><p>“We’re gonna have to fight our way through, aren’t we?” she muttered, although it was more of a statement than a question. Scarlett nodded grimly in confirmation.</p><p>“On three, we run.” She looked at Danielle, as if to say: nice knowing you.<br/>
Danielle squeezed the redhead’s shoulder in reassurance.</p><p>“One, two, THREE!” They sprinted out from the alley, leaping over rubble and dodging zombies, their breath a ragged knife in their chests.</p><p>“Agh!” A zombie’s clawed hands wrapped around Danielle’s arm and she gasped in pain as its jagged claws pierced her flesh.<br/>
The grip lessened and she tore herself out of the creature’s grasp, whirling to see Scarlett standing over the fallen zombie, a rusty metal pole clutched in both hands and wild look in her eyes, her long red hair blowing around her head in a flame-like whirlwind.</p><p><br/>
“You- you saved my life!” Danielle panted. She tried to reign in her panic. The zombie had scratched her and she prayed she wasn’t infected.</p><p>“Come on!” Scarlett grabbed her arm and dashed over to a reinforced door, open just wide enough for the two women to slip through.</p><p>Arms reached out and grabbed them, pulling them in just as the door slammed shut. There were in the middle of a crowd of people standing around them, all looking at them curiously.</p><p>“Are you hurt? Any scratches or bites from zombies?” A tall man was looking at them in concern, scanning them for any sign of if they were hurt. His sandy hair fell over his features, preventing Danny from getting a good look at him despite how familiar he seemed.</p><p>“Y-yeah.” Danielle panted, “On my arm. Just a scratch.”</p><p>“Follow me.” The man swiftly led her to what was evidently functioning as the infirmary. There were white beds along one wall, with the other taken up by curtained cubicles and an operating table. Medical supplies took up every other available surface.</p><p>“Thank god you weren’t bitten!” muttered the man as he hurried about applying disinfectant to the zombie scratch adorning her left arm. “With cuts and scrapes,” he explained, “if you can sterilise it quickly enough it should prevent the parasite from taking hold, but getting bitten is a whole ‘nother story.” He held his tongue between his teeth as he used tweezers to remove pieces of grit from a particularly nasty graze on her knee. She winced.</p><p><br/>
“Sorry. It has to be done.” She knew he was right, but it didn’t prevent her from glaring at him reproachfully as he wiped disinfectant over the wound, causing it to sting in protest.</p><p>When he was done, he brushed his hair out of his face, tucking it behind an ear. The tall man’s chiselled features now revealed, she was able to recognise him, with his warm brown eyes and freckled skin, the way his sandy hair was brushed behind one ear but still sticking up slightly at the back…</p><p>“Luke?” Danielle stared in shock. “I though you died when the Greenwood Sanctuary fell!”</p><p>“Surprise! I lived.” he chuckled warmly. God, she’d missed him! She smiled fondly.<br/>
"I fell in with another group that was heading to Waterbridge Sanctuary – that's this place, by the way."</p><p>“I’m glad you’re ok,” Danny admitted.</p><p>“You too. Now: this way please!” He proceeded to usher her through the door with an exaggerated bow and led her through to an enormous common-room filled with people. Scarlett was already there and caught her eyes, beaming. Danielle waved back.</p><p>Luke walked up to the front and grinned at everyone.</p><p>"Welcome to Waterbridge Sanctuary!”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This is an incredibly overdone trope, but nevertheless I am proud of my attempt. I hope you enjoyed it! If you did, please feel free to leave a comment or a kudos!</p></blockquote></div></div>
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